:: New Pagans – Making Circles of Our Own (album, Big Scary Monsters)
THE second album from Belfast alt-rock quintet New Pagans, Making Circles of Our Own finds the band building on the solid, post-punky, catchy crunchy sonic foundation laid down by their infectiously angsty and intellectual 2021 debut, The Seed, The Vessel, The Roots and All – essentially a pleasingly coherent collection of the band's best work to that point, most of which was already out in the world as singles and EP tracks prior to its release.
MCOOO arrives shrouded in a tad more mystery, with just five of the 11 tracks having snuck out in advance of the album proper.
Better People was our first taste of what Cahir (guitar), Lyndsey (singing), Claire (bass/art), Allan (guitar) and Conor (drums) were busy doing during the long hard lockdown induced absence of live music and general normality. Appropriately enough, it's also their album-opening gambit: a rousing, chiming guitars-powered blast of uplifting alt-rock stamped with the kind of urgent, dynamic and thumping groove that has become this band's signature – along with Lyndsey's spine-tingling vocal power and prowess, of course.
The latter really comes to the fore on the atmospheric newie A Process of Becoming, a slower, hypnotically slinky head-nodder which explodes into to life for a soaring sing-along chorus that will definitely test your high-note hitting abilities.
"It's better if you come with me-ee-eee" Lyndsey advises, and frankly I wouldn't argue.
These two tunes bracket previous single Find Fault With Me – a gloriously, unabashedly Sonic Youth-at-their catchiest-informed affair tackling gender roles – and are followed by another trio of recently released material.
The delightfully woozy main guitar riff of the heavy-yet-nimble music biz crit Fresh Young Overlook reminds me of The Flaming Lips and The Wedding Present simultaneously, which makes it a winner (obviously) and it also boasts a cracking breakdown/build-up bit in the middle.
Having lived with and listened to the Derek Jarman-inspired rocker There We Are Now John for a couple of weeks now, I'm comfortable making the assertion that this single is definitely one of the best songs New Pagans have put out to date. The catchy chorus, those squalling guitars, the stomping drums that occasionally take the lead, that urgent get-up-and-jump bassline and the way the band just absolutely rock out from the middle bit onwards – it's enough to make you believe Britpop never happened.
The breezy Karin Was Not a Rebel and churning Better Homes are another couple of Sonic Youth-lovin' tunes marrying spiky post-punk playing to sharp hook-laden songcraft, the former boasting the unusual subject matter of modern interior design.
The sublime dub-informed bass playing on musical pep-talk Hear Me, You Were Always Good anchors New Pagans as they playfully push and pull in odder/moodier directions that really, really suit them, and there's some splendid guitar abuse in there too.
The album ends strongly with another pair of quality new offerings: Comparable Reflections combines all of the band's best 'indie rock' qualities into an instantly infectious package that shouts 'future single', while The State of My Love's Desires offers yet another taste of something different for the band in the form of a beautiful, cello-enhanced ballad which finds Lyndsey duetting with Seafood man David Line to swoonsome effect.
Forget 'difficult second albums', Making Circles of Our Own is a cracker and New Pagans' best work to date. Own it now on vinyl via your favourite independent record shop or bsmrocks.com and/or in digital form via newpagans.bandcamp.com.
Don't miss the band performing these songs and old favourites at The Ulster Sports Club on March 2 with support from Extravision – tickets £11.01 in advance via eventbrite.co.uk.
:: Roe – My Greatest Fear (single, self-released)
ONWARDS to more quality new homegrown music in the form of Roe's latest single, which finds the eclectic Derry artist following up her excellent debut album That's When The Panic Sets In with a brand new song.
On My Greatest Fear, Roe (aka Roisin Donald) utilises noisy 90s indie rock-informed sounds, with clattering drums and a big crunchy guitars bolstering her signature emotive vocals, which soar on the uber-catchy chorus and coo during the occasional quieter bits. It's a wee bit Pixies, a wee bit Sugar, and a wee bit great.
"My Greatest Fear is screaming into the void, melodically," says Roe, and who are we to disagree?
Get it right now wherever you like to stream music and be advised that Roe will be playing live at The Ulster Sports Club on March 9. Tickets available via roeofficial.com.
:: Wood Burning Savages – Hand To Mouth (single, self-released)
WHAT? Three quality new local releases in a row? Yes indeed, because here come Derry's Wood Burning Savages with a scorching new song inspired by the economic dire straits we are currently suffering through.
"Death by a thousand cuts, we're living hand to mouth" snarls WBS frontman Paul Connolly on this disgust-fuelled post-Manics/Muse banger aimed squarely at the Tory austerity machine and those on this island who lick their boots.
"I regularly talk to people who tell me more and more that they feel like they have been forgotten about or left behind," explains Connolly.
"This song is a signal fire to say that things haven't been right for a long time, but now enough is enough. We're not going to stand by and let generations of hard work and community collaboration be ripped apart.
"People deserve dignity, and it's not up for negotiation."
Choose your side now at thewoodburningsavages.bandcamp.com and make your voice count at their upcoming Belfast show at The Limelight on March 25. Tickets £14 via Limelightbelfast.com.
:: Atomic Drag – The Return of The Atomic Undead (single, self-released)
IT WAS Atomic Drag man Lee McDaid's birthday last week – 666 years young, we hear – which Ireland's premium purveyor of ghoulish surf-strumentals celebrated by generously giving away free download codes for the Drag's last EP, 2022's Black Magic, Spells and Other Neat Weird Stuff.
Such canny self-promotion worked, because I ended up giving said EP another blast myself, just to check on whether it was still ~ consults notes ~ "guaranteed to sate all your 'Halloween in February' needs".
Reader(s), I'm happy to report that it is. However, I also noticed that there's actually another Atomic Drag tune out there that Noise Annoys has somehow managed to sleep in on.
Reader(s), I apologise.
Released back in October, The Return of The Atomic Dead opens up with ye olde TV newscaster from zombie classic Night of The Living Dead making his grim announcement about the dead becoming "flesh-eating ghouls" and then advising that they must be disposed of "by cremation".
There then commences an eruption of the Drag's playful yet delightfully nasty surf rock, which races up the beach after you fast 'n' foamy, like a big wave of reverb-laced doom from which there is no escape.
Given recent global events, the likelihood of such horror film fiction actually becoming a real headline has never seemed more plausible (or perhaps I've just been watching too much of The Last of Us lately), so at least we've now got a twang-tastic soundtrack to any imminent zombie apocalypse.
As the last ghostly echoes of the song fade, the captured remains of that poor auld lady ghoul from Return of The Living Dead sadly intone "I can feel myself rotting", a statement which will surely strike a bloated minor chord with those still struggling to get a healthier regime up and running in the wake of their Christmas and New Year excesses.
Better get going now, for you'll be a long time undead – see atomicdrag.bandcamp.com for details.
